FTSE today: market report - as it happened April 8, 2011

The FTSE 100 was dragged higher by miners buoyed by gold and silver at record
highs.

Miners helped to put the benchmark index on a firmer footing after it slipped back late on Thursday following an earthquake in Japan. The FTSE 100 climbed 48.38 points to 6055.75 while the FTSE 250 gained 66.77 points to 11726.19.

Also on the rise was security company, G4S, which put on 3.6 to 262.7p after buying The Cotswold Group, a surveillance provider, for £10.2m.

Ticking up too was drug maker, Shire, which was 28p better at £18.19. It was given a fillip by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) saying it was not recommending changes in the use of stimulants to treat hyperactivity, such as Shire’s Adderall XR, after a review of a study into potential heart disease risks from the medicines.

The FDA is yet to give a full update on its report, but traders were heartened by the positive signals coming from the medicines watchdog.

“While not absolutely definitive, this is positive for the stimulant class and for Shire,” analysts at Bernstein said. “Concerns over the possibility of a bad outcome have curbed our enthusiasm for Shire.”

But as oil prices rose to a 30-month high, airlines fell out of favour. On the top flight, International Airlines Group slid 5.6 to 217.4p while mid-cap peer, easyJet fell 8.7 to 324.3p. Also weighing on the latter was a note from UBS cutting its price target to 420p from 460p, but keeping its “buy” rating.

3.50pm: Wall Street weakens, but FTSE hangs onto gains

Despite a weak showing on Wall Street, the FTSE 100 held onto its gains, advancing 46 points to 6053 while the FTSE 250 climbed 61 points to 11720.

US stocks were on the decline, erasing their gains as financial and technology companies wiped out an early rally led by energy and commodity producers. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 4 points to 12405.

12.15: Games Workshop advances on bullish trading statement

Amongst the small-caps, Games Workshop jumped 47.5 to 377.5p after the maker of Warhammer products said profits would top market estimates.

The retailer, which licences The Lord of the Rings tabletop battle game, said cash generation remained healthy and set a dividend of 20p per share.

Analysts at Peel Hunt, who have a "buy" rating on Games Workshop, said:

"Games Workshop has never been in better shape operationally and we should see a return to sales growth. The company has excellent long-term potential, given the global scope of the business, high margins and strong cash generation."

"[The market move] is a bounce back on the back of the news from Japan and that was priced in the on the back of the Asian markets responding strongly last night," Martin Dobson, head of trading at Westhouse Securities, said.

Scottish & Southern Energy was also in demand, climbing 30p to £13.13, as Credit Suisse upped the utility company's rating to "outperform" from "neutral".

Shares in Intertek slid 1.8pc after J.P. Morgan cuts its rating on the testing firm to "neutral" from "overweight" on valuation grounds.

ICAP, the money broker, was also down 1.76pc after it was cut to "underperform" by Credit Suisse.

Russian sugar and pork producer Rusagro made its debut in London, rising 6pc in conditional trading in London, after the company priced its initial public offering towards the low end of an indicative range to raise up to $330m. The shares in the company were trading at $15.85, up from $15 float price.

06.00 Nikkei highest since March 11 quake

Japanese shares rose after a strong aftershock that jolted northeastern Japan did not trigger a tsunami or damage further the Fukushima nuclear plant where workers are battling to cool overheated reactors.

The Nikkei 225 index closed up 1.9pc at 9768.08 - the highest it has been since the earthquake on March 11.

Most other major Asian stock market were higher with Hong Kong's Hang Seng up 0.6pc, the Shanghai Composite rising 0.3pc and Australia's ASX gaining 0.4pc. South Korea's Kospi, which had been up 0.5pc earlier in the day, dipped 0.1pc.

On Wall Street yesterday, stocks ended with small losses due to the aftershock that rattled Japan. The Dow Jones industrial average fell as many as 96 points in morning trading, but recovered most of its losses after a tsunami warning was lifted.

Brent crude prices rose above $123 a barrel as traders weighed the fighting in Libya and a weaker dollar against concerns that rising fuel costs could undermine US economic growth and demand for crude.